76ers’ Tyrese Maxey Suffers Finger Injury, Will Be Out for Three Weeks
The Philadelphia 76ers’ star guard, Tyrese Maxey, has been diagnosed with a tendon injury in his right pinky finger and will be reevaluated in approximately three weeks, the team announced on Tuesday. The injury occurred during a game in Atlanta on Saturday, when Maxey collided with teammate Adem Bona. He immediately grabbed his right hand and went to the locker room. Coach Nick Nurse reported on Monday that X-rays and MRI did not reveal any fractures. However, Maxey consulted hand specialists and the tendon injury was determined. Maxey had already suffered a sprain in the same little finger last season. This season, he is averaging career highs in points (29), rebounds (4.1), assists (6.7), steals (2), and blocks (0.8) in 61 games. The 76ers secured a victory against the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night, with a score of 139-129.Philadelphia has a 33-28 record with Maxey, the only NBA player with 100 steals and 50 blocks this season, and 2-2 without him. Currently, the 76ers are in eighth place in the Eastern Conference. The last day of the NBA regular season is April 12. If Maxey couldn’t play anymore in the regular season, he would be four games away from meeting the eligibility requirement for All-NBA honors. In addition to Maxey, Joel Embiid (right oblique sprain) and Paul George (suspended by the league) are also out of action for the 76ers. In the last two seasons, the 76ers have only played 31 games with Embiid, George, and Maxey available. Maxey leads the league in minutes per game and miles run per game. His 29 points per game rank him fourth in the NBA and are the most for a 76ers guard since Allen Iverson in 2005-06.“Obviously, it’s a big blow for him,” Nurse said after the game. “He’s having an All-NBA-worthy season. We hope he recovers very quickly and can play again without problems. He has played incredibly. Obviously, it also puts us in trouble with the absence of other players. We hope these two or three weeks fly by and he’s ready to play.”
Nick Nurse
